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2/28/13

SHOW REVIEW & PHOTOS: Electric Six in Houston TX by MCB old schooler Riaz Khan

So if you have paid much attention to MCB over the years there is no doubt you came across many a photo set from our old time buddy Riaz Khan who moved from Detroit to Houston a few years ago

Riaz covered hundreds of shows for MCB and has been popping back in from time to time with photo sets of Detroit based bands touring through Houston including this little gem of Electric Six

who played Fitzgerald's on 2/22

Electric Six @
Fitzgerald’s, Houston – 2/22

I first got into concert photography in 2008 as a
photographer for the MOTORCITYBLOG.

I got to see Electric Six in 2009 at the
Blind Pig in Ann Arbor on assignment. That was an awesome night. The band was
incredible and place was packed with a hardcore following, both the young and
the slightly less young.

A few short years later, I left Detroit and started
freelancing as a photographer in Houston, Texas. I found out a couple of months
ago that Electric Six were about to go on tour and they were going to make a pit
stop in Houston. I figured this was a great opportunity to see the band again
and give a little back to MCB, where I got my first few breaks as a
photographer.

The band played to a really diverse crowd at the
Fitzgerald’s last Friday. Their sets were slick and the fans chimed in with the
chorus lines. The audience was totally hooked and the lack of space wasn’t a
deterrent to crowd surfers and mosh-pitters at all.

The Fitzgerald’s has a rich history. Like the Blind Pig,
this venue became a live music hotspot in the seventies and has stood the test
of time as a local favorite over the several decades that have followed. Right
now, Fitzgerald’s is partially owned and run by the Houston Free Press. From a
performers’ point of view, local acts like Brandon West and The Suffers really
like the acoustics and the crowd-factor of this space.

There are a couple of subtle differences between the two
venues though. The Blind Pig has had wider appeal with out-of-state bands and
audiences. Allegedly it was Kurt Cobain’s favorite venue to play at. Critics
often claim that Detroit has a handful of venues that have been important to the
careers of many international acts and that The Blind Pig has always been one of
them. This has had a lot to do with the fact that Detroit has been creating and
maintaining a cultural niche for itself with punk, rock, funk and electronic
genres since forever. Despite the persistently crumbling economy, Detroit still
has that going for itself in spades.

Houston on the other hand is kind of different. Its economy
has been booming courtesy of the Oil & Gas and Health industries but it
hasn’t been a major player on the cultural map. This is about to change though.
The disposable income in this town is visible by the truckloads and there is a
lot of local talent that is diverse and young. Also it’s only a matter of time
that the trickle-down effect from Austin’s now-thriving indie scene manifests
itself in Houston.